fruit flies
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Bactrocera, Dacus, Ceratitis
Real Solutions | Real Farming
Founded in 2013 by owners,
Louise Labuschagne and
Dr Henry Wainwright,
Real IPM now employs 250
staff.
Our BASIS-qualified field
consultants serve both
large and small-scale
farmers in crops ranging
from cereals,
field vegetables, fruit and
nut plantations,
to greenhouse vegetables
and ornamental crops.
Nairobi has excellent airfreight logistics for exports and our products have Registrations
in Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Ghana, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, and
Canada; and are under-going other pan-African Registrations.
Based in Thika, Kenya, Real
IPM is a leading producer
and toll manufacturer of
predatory mites, which are
exported globally for other
bio-control company
brands.
Our predatory mites are
produced under license
from Syngenta Bioline
Biopesticides are produced
by our laboratories in
Kenya. We have global
rights to several isolates of
Metarhizium under license
from icipe international
research institute. Together
with our own isolates, we
have a comprehensive offer
for crop protection
solutions
Real Insights on Fruit fly
The Real Insights on Fruit fly was developed
by joint MD of Real IPM Kenya,
Louise Labuschagne, by bringing together
published information from many sources and
pooling the extensive field experiences of the
Real IPM technical field advisors working in
Africa.
Louise has over 30 years experience in IPM
crop protection and is BASIS-qualified and
legally able to give advice on the use of
chemical pesticides under UK law.
The contents of the Real Insights on Fruit fly
are offered as useful information for
agronomists seeking to develop more robust
IPM programmes in many parts of the world.
It is not advice.
Growers must satisfy themselves of the local
registration issues for both chemicals and
biological control agents and the efficacy of
these control methods under their local
conditions.
In order to capitalise on the information
provided, growers are encouraged to contact
Real IPM Kenya Ltd for both in-depth training
and consultancy services to develop
appropriate IPM programmes in the country
where their crops are grown.
www.realipm.com
If local Registrations are needed, Real IPM
Kenya is willing to discuss potential markets
and collaborations that will enable this to
happen.
Economic Impact of Fruit flies
Fruit flies are migratory pests of critical economic importance.
Wherever in the world, fruit is grown – fruit flies are
causing serious damage.
Commercial losses of 100% have been recorded,
particularly in mango crops, which are attractive to a
number of different fruit fly species.Flies lay eggs in
ripening fruit.The larvae, which develop from these eggs,
feed on fruit pulp completely destroying the fruit.
Fruit flies ‘travel’ the globe in infested fruits as they are traded internationally or smuggled in
personal baggage by international travellers. Phytosanitary measures are in place globally to try
to reduce this risk. Many important fruit flies are Quarantine Pests.
However, when they find a ripe fruit in which to lay eggs, they do not move from this site more
than about 40 meters.Life is short – it makes sense to stay in one place, mate, lay eggs and die.
This is why there may sometime be regional restrictions in the movement of fruits within a
country.
Commercial losses of 100% have been recorded, particularly in mango crops, which are attractive
to a number of different fruit fly species. Flies lay eggs in ripening fruit. The larvae, which
develop from these eggs, feed on fruit pulp – completely destroying the fruit.
Bactrocera Invadens
(Invader Fly)
Bactrocera Cucurbitae
(Melon Fruit Fly)
1
Ceratitis Cosyra
(Mango Fruit Fly)
Know your enemy
It is important to be able to identify which species of fruit fly is present in the orchard because
• Some of the monitoring and control methods are species-specific – working only for certain
types of fruit fly. Incorrect identification of the range of fruit flies present may lead a grower to
make assumptions about the level of control expected from purchasing certain monitoring or
control products.
• Some common fruit fly species are Quarantine Pests in export markets (A1 EPPO List) or have
been recommended as Quarantine Pests (A2 EPPO List)1 This means, that if found in exported
fruits, there is the risk that future exports might be banned,
• Bactrocera invadens, is not only a Quarantine Pest in export markets for mangoes, but also has
the ability to reproduce fast and displace local types of fruit flies. This will accelerate the risk
of severe damage to the export markets.
•Control of all types of fruit fly, irrespective of type, is important because, once
Bactrocera invadens is controlled, the other endemic fruit flies will move back into the area and
continue to cause damage.
Visit www.realipm.com to download
a copy of the fruit fly identification
poster, developed in collaboration
with icipe
Growers may order a copy of the Icipe fruit fly
identification handbook on the Real IPM website.
Payments can be made by M-Pesa or other
means on application. [email protected]
1
http://www.eppo.int/QUARANTINE/listA2.htm?utm_source=www.eppo.org&utm_medium=int_redirect
2
The main fruit fly problems
The three main groups of fruit flies of concern eratitis, Bactrocera and acus have a very wide
crop host range.The following focus list highlights those of economic importance in crops of
potential export value. The key in the right column is the
reference number for their
Quarantine status. This Manual will therefore focus on these types of fruit fly.
Bactrocera
Bactrocera invadens
Invader Fly
Bactrocera cucurbitacae
Melon Fly
Bactrocera zonata
Peach Fruit fly
Dacus
Dacus ciliatus
Dacus bivittatus
Dacus punctatifrons
Dacus vertebratus
Dacus lounsbouryi
Dacus frontalis
Lesser Pumpkin Fly
Pumpkin Fly
Jointed Pumpkin Fly
Ceratitis
Ceratitis capitata
Mediterranean Fruit ly
Ceratatis rosa
Natal Fruit Fly
Ceratatis cosyra
Mango Fruit Fly
Ceratitis rubivora
Ceratitis fasciventris
Farmers need to be vigilant and know what species of fruit fly
are present in their farm. This knowledge will influence what
type of lure and trap will attract and trap the different species.
If farmers know what species of fruit fly are present they can:
• Advise when fruit flies are building up and when to start
crop protection
• Use the correct lure to trap the local type of fruit flies
3
New aggressive species of fruit fly
New aggressive species of fruit fly
s if the fruit fly problem was not bad enough already – a new species of fruit fly is rapidly
spreading throughout the world. ts name is Bactrocera in adens.
Bactrocera in adens seems to be replacing indigenous species of fruit fly as it can reproduce so
rapidly.
ne female Bactrocera can lay up to
egg-laying adult fly.
fruit fly, laying
eggs, which take only
here are likely to be more than
eggs each generation for
generations per year on the
uator. ne
generations could lea e many hundreds of
thousands of offspring in the orchard.
4
days to turn into another
Difficult to control with chemicals
The fast reproduction rate of fruit flies and their wide crop plant host range contributes to the
success of one of the world’s most difficult-to -control pests. The resistance of adult fruit flies
to chemical is fast becoming a major issue.
Male and female fruit flies mate and then eggs are laid in green or ripe fruit on the tree
depending on the species of fruit fly . ggs can e en be laid on ripe fallen fruit.
The egg develops into a larvae that feed on the flesh of fruit, making them unmarketable.
The fruit may fall to the ground or be thrown away by the farmer on the soil. When in contact
with the soil, the larvae exit and pupate in the soil. Finally, an adult fruit fly emerges from the soil
and the cycle continues.
The Real IPM Fruit Fly programme
The naturally occurring, insect-killing fungus, called Metarhizium, is the backbone of the
inno ati e eal
fruit fly. Bio-intensi e
is better than chemical controls for fruit flies.
The Real IPM programme attacks the fruit fly life stage in the soil and the egg-laying female flies,
as well as the adult flies.
Chemical pesticides do not generally target the eggs, larvae or pupae – which leaves these life
stages safely developing in fruits or in the soil. Many chemical insecticides are very harmful to
parasitic wasps that naturally kill fruit flies. This can make the fruit fly problem worse.
5
Problems with Pesticides
Governments have reacted to this problem by
financing aerial spraying even over domestic
areas where fruit trees in gardens are the
source of fruit flies in commercial farms nearby.
Resistance to chemical pesticides is
compounding the difficulties in controlling fruit flies by solely chemical
programmes.
idence of resistance to
a wide range of pesticides is recorded all
over the world.
There are health and safety risks attached to
this affirmative action. The widespread aerial
application of organophosphates for fruit fly in
Californian suburbs is no longer permitted.
The vast swathes of land infested with
fruit flies, encompasses many millions of
farmers. ach farmer may ha e a different view of the serious nature of the pest
and whether he or she can afford to
apply a chemical control for fruit flies.
Less harmful active ingredients such as
spinosad are now used in regional aerial spraying programmes.
Pockets of fruit flies are likely to
rein ade treated areas ery uickly from
untreated farms.
6
Programme
The IPM crop protection programme has five phases:
1.
Monitoring of the increase in fruit flies at the beginning of fruit fly season
.
imely application of soil drench of etarhi ium
under the trees to kill the pupae of all
types of fruit fly. his will also kill mango wee il and thrips. epeat this e ery weeks if
fruit fly le els high or a uarantine pest.
.
imely set up of
eal etarhi ium
uto- issemination e ices per hectare
for protein bait
de ices be hung in the trees to infect li ing fruit flies and thereby
contaminate and kill the rest of the population. If methyl eugenol is used instead of
protein baits in the
de ices – then only
d de ices are needed per hectare – but it
will only attract male Bactrocera not other species .
.
.
.
.
e-charge the
et
spores in the
de ices e ery
weeks during the fruit fly season.
f necessary, foliar sprays of etarhi ium
in the canopy at the correct time of day to
contact fruit flies that are actively feeding in the canopy.
ollect fallen fruit and place in a parasitoid har esting tent
see instructions later in manual
se COMPATIBLE SPRAY PROGRAMME for all other pests and diseases that will NOT KILL
fruit fly parasitoids. Seek ad ice from eal
.
oid use of pyrethroids and
organo-phosphates.
IMPORTANT
uto-dissemination de ices are a lure where li e fruit flies come and go, after being infected
with an insect-killing fungus, called Metarhizium.
n
de ice is not a mass-trapping de ice. he fruit flies must remain ali e for the infection of
the local population with the Metarhizium.
f sufficient
de ices are used per hectare, then up to
could be infected with the etarhi ium within weeks.
of the local population of fruit flies
s soon as the
de ices are in the crop, any mass trapping de ices must be remo ed because
they will kill the fruit flies that are infected by the etarhi ium from the uto- issemination
e ices
de ices . f this happens – there will be no hori ontal transmission of the
Metarhizium and less fruit flies will be killed.
t takes to days for a fruit fly to die from the infection of
have infected more fruit flies.
7
etarhi ium.
n this time they will
REAL
METARHIZIUM
REAL
METARHIZIUM
Real IPM (Kenya) Ltd
has commercialised a number
of entomopathogenic fungi
(Metarhizium anisopliae) from icipe an
international research institute based in
Nairobi, Kenya.
Metarhizium anisopliae is a ubiquitous,
naturally in the soil and when taken out of
the soil and mass- produced as a bio-insecticide, it will not persist for more than
about 12 hours in the canopy because UV
light kills it.
Metarhizium 69 has been tested
Metarhizium 62 has proved effective
against aphids and leafminer
Metarhizium 78 infects spider mite,
tarsonemid mites, varroa mites and leafminer.
PEST-SPECIFIC
METARHIZIUM ISOLATES
If the Metarhizium spore lands on an insect pest’s body and the spore can
‘recognise’ the pest, only then will it germinate. The process of ‘recognition’ makes
the many different isolates of Metarhizium
are not ‘broad spectrum” in the same way
as some chemical insecticides. This is why
each different Metarhizium isolated from
the soil is named with a different number.
8
Advantages of Metarhizium
.
.
.
.
It is compatible with predatory mites and parasitoids.
There are no pesticide residue issues, or re-entry intervals with this product.
It is safe to humans and the environment.
There is no recorded resistance of pests to Metarhizium, due to its many modes of action
.
Metarhizium spores are sprayed onto the soil and in the canopy. The fungus can grow
saprophytically on organic matter in the soil, where it can reduce the number of fruit fly, thrips
and weevils emerging as adults from the pupae in the soil.
he addition of a layer of organic matter sawdust, rice husks, coffee husks etc. on the soil
surface will promote this effect.
Metarhizium life cycle
Metarhizium spore germinates on contact
with insect’s body then forms an apressorium
that helps it penetrate the cuticle.
The fungus grows through the insect’s
cuticle, into the haemolymph, where it
proliferates and kills the target pest.
9 10
© Real IPM (Kenya) Ltd www.realipm.com
Fruit flies infected with
Metarhizium, spread the fungus
by social contact with males
and females. hey die in days, so there are fewer eggs
laid in fruit
If fruit fly levels are very
high, a foliar spray of
Real Metarhizium can be
made in the canopy,
when fruit flies are
present
Male and female fruit flies
of all species are attracted
to the protein bait in the
eal
utoDissemination Device
Metarhizium does not
kill fruit fly parasitoids
so more of them will
survive foliar sprays
and kill more fruit flies
Fewer adult fruit flies
emerge from the soil, so
there is less egg-laying
in the fruit
Real Metarhizium is
drenched onto the soil to
kill fruit fly pupae
10
More fruit fly
parasitoids will
emerge from the
soil because
Metarhizium will
not kill them.
Therefore parasitoids can make
a greater contribution to fruit fly
control in a Real
IPM programme
Real IPM Auto-Dissemination Device
he eal
de ice is a -piece unit which attracts fruit flies into a top section, where it
becomes contaminated with an insect-killing fungus called Metarhizium. The fruit flies cannot
become trapped and killed in the li uid lure in the base section, because of the di iding section
between the lure and the Metarhizium arena.
11
Key
uncontaminated flies
contaminated flies
eal
et
Spores
Field flies continue to
spread the
eal et
spores to other fruit
flies
contamination
of fruit flies with Real
et
in wks
Contaminated flies
from
de ice
infect other flies in
the field when
mating or grooming
Real AD device
food bait lure will attract male and female adults Bactrocera, acus
B
they cannot drown in the li uid food bait because
there is a dividing screen that prevents them entering
12
eratitits .
Mass Trapping Lure
No auto dissemination if
mass trapping lure is used
within 12m of an AD device
There is no dividing screen
in a mass trapping lure so
flies that enter drown in the
lure
Fruit flies contaminated
with eal et
from
the
de ice could be
killed in a mass trapping
lure before they can
cross -contaminate the
rest of the fruit fly
population
13
Fruit fly life cycle
Real IPM Met 69 soil drench
Fruit flies
attack fruit
Fruit fly parasitoids
not killed by
fruit
flies emerge
from soil and
attack fruit
No fruit flies
emerge from
soil
x
Fruit fly pupae
et
Fruit fly larvae from
fallen fruit will pupate
in the soil
x
x
et
kills fruit fly
pupae in the soil
x
Fruit fly pupae
eal et
soil drenches will not kill parasitic wasps that kill either fruitfly pupae. he
parasitoids can kill MANY fruit fly lar ae pupae. hemical pesticides will kill fruit fly
parasitoids. CONSERVE fruit fly parasitoids - use eal et
14
Real IPM Auto-dissemination Device
Auto-dissemination is a technology, which has been tested by ICIPE Scientists and found to be a
very effective means of controlling fruit flies. It uses the live fruit flies themselves to transmit an
insect-killing fungus, called Real Metarhizium 69 throughout the population.
Real IPM AD device
The modified Lynefield Lure is a bucket with a lid. It has holes in the side so that flies can enter,
after being attracted by the protein bait inside the bucket.
The protein bait will be separated from the rest of the bucket, so that flies cannot fall into the bait
and get ‘trapped’. If they are trapped and killed – they cannot ‘auto-disseminate’.
The Inside surface of the bucket is lined with velvet material that will be sprayed every 6 weeks
with Metarhizium 69. This is called ‘re-charging’ the trap.
The flies move over the surface of the velvet and pick up Metarhizium spores. They will not die
for another 2 to 5 days, depending on how many spores they picked up and what the temperature
is. High temperatures, hasten death.
15
Field Guidance on AD device use.
•
here will be
–
de ices per hectare using the protein bait that attracts males and
females of all the types of fruit flies. If methyl eugenol is used instead of the protein bait,
only
de ices are needed per hectare but it will only attract male Bactrocera .
•
he de ices will be hung from
trees, spread e enly throughout the orchard.
devices should be hung so that they are about 1.5 meters from the ground.
•
ag the trees with a bright yellow tape so that they can easily be found again, for weekly
inspections and when it is time to re-charge them with more Metarhizium.
•
ecords should be kept of the recharge dates and repairs that need to be made to the
devices.
he
ICIPE Scientific Results after correct AD device use
•
ess than
of fruits infested with fruit fly from orchards treated with
hereas there was
infested in orchards without
de ices.
de ices alone.
•
hen combined with the soil treatments with
control achieved.
•
uto-dissemination may ha e a greater impact than mass trapping on fruit fly numbers as
long as there are no other lures in the field and the
de ices are combined with SOIL
APPLICATIONS of Metarhizium 69 for fruit fly pupae.
16
etarhi ium, there would be e en greater
Auto-dissemination devices need to be re-charged every six weeks, according to trials results
from icipe scientists.
ICIPE scientists found that the
etarhi ium uto- issemination de ices
provided as good a control as the
malathion. Malathion is a broadspectrum organo-phosphate insecticide,
which was used for many years for the
control of fruit flies.
The Metarhizium spores remain
active for up to six weeks,
before needing to be
re-charged
Most farms are now moving away from using malathion because of its perceived harmful
effect on the environment.
The Metarhizium
de ices gi e as
good control as
malathion, if used
correctly in an IPM
programme
This result was achieved without adding the Metarhizium application to the soil, which would
have even further reduced the fruit fly numbers.
17
Soil applications of Real Metarhizium 69
All fruit fly species have part of their life cycle in the soil. ICIPE scientists have tested the
efficacy of Metarhizium applications to the soil and the persistence of the control of fruit flies
achieved.
The Real IPM programme will make a minimum of two applications of Metarhizium 69 to the soil.
Soil drenches of
Real Metarhizium
provide significant
control of all species
of fruit flies.
The above graph shows the percentage difference in the number of adults trapped in an orchard
before and after treatment of the S
with etarhi ium oil a ueous formulation compared to
the broad-spectrum organophosphate, diazinon. This result was recorded only 2 weeks after the
soil application.
At least two soil
drenches of Real
Metarhizium are
advisable during the
fruit fly season.
The above graph shows the difference in fruit fly numbers 185 days
after the single SOIL application of Metarhizium. Note the INCREASE
in fruit fly numbers in the
treated soil.
18
What is the effect on fruit fly parasitoids of the SOIL treatments?
Fruit fly parasitoids will lay eggs inside the fruit fly pupae that are in the SOIL.
The data presented from the ICIPE work above shows clearly that if chemical pesticides are
applied to the soil there is an IMMEDIATE and TOTAL ANNIHILATION of fruit fly parasitoids
straight after the application.
Fruit fly parasitoids are
not affected by
drenches of
Real Metarhizium
in the soil.
19
Behaviour of Fruit fly adults
Knowing where and when fruit fly adults
are likely to be in a crop, will allow growers
to target their canopy sprays of Met 69 more
effectively.
The best time of
day to spray for
adult fruit flies
in the crop is
9-10 Am and
4-5 Pm
crop in the middle of the day. They are
more likely to be found in the windbreaks
20
Fruit Fly Parasitoids
Real IPM will begin the mass production of
fruit fly parasitoids for distribution to various
African countries, following Registration.
Growers will be kept informed of their
availability by following us on Twitter.
Conservation of natural enemies of fruit flies
Although the chemicals now used for aerial
spray programmes are considered safe for
humans, they are still likely to have some
negative effect on the tiny naturally occurring parasitic wasps, which lay their eggs in
the larvae and pupae of fruit flies.
In the meantime, the Real IPM programme
using Metarhizium 69 will not kill the indigenous, naturally occurring parasitoids. The
Real IPM programme CONSERVES fruit fly
parasitoids.
Growers may believe that cheap broadspectrum pyrethroids can save them money
on their spray programme; but they can also
‘cost’ growers dearly because they kill fruit
fly parasitoids. According to icipe, even
spinosad is known to have some negative
effect on fruit fly parasitoids. After a single
spray of a pyrethroid, up to
of them can
be killed and this harmful effect on fruit fly
parasitoids could last up to
weeks.
In spite of its very small size, each female
parasitic wasp can kill up to
fruit fly
larvae or pupae by laying an egg inside the
fruit fly. Parasitoids are able to fly and seek
out fruit fly larvae and pupae that have not
been infected with Metarhizium yet.
21
Conserve, collect and recycle parasitoids
Fruit fly parasitoids may not need to be bought from commercial companies to be applied to the
crop, if a compatible spray programme is implemented.
They will build up in high numbers if there are fruit fly larvae and pupae in the crop. It is likely
that most of the fruit fly larvae and pupae in the crop will be in fallen fruit on the orchard floor.
If these fruit are collected and placed inside a fruit fly parasitoid collection tent – the parasitoids
can be allowed to emerge and fly back into the crop or collected and taken to fruit fly hotspots.
The tent is a simple device made from a tent over the top of a box of fallen fruit. The netting
mesh size needs to be small enough to allow the exit of the fruit fly parasitoids but not the fruit
flies, which are bigger than parasitoids. Make sure that the edges of the net are securely fixed to
the box containing the fruit – otherwise fruit flies may escape as well.
Collecting fallen fruit with fruit
flies is good orchard hygiene,
which will also remove black rot
(Aspergillus), bacterial canker
(Xanthomonas) and anthracnose
(Colletotrichum).
22
Community –wide programmes
There is therefore a constant threat of invasion
Studies have revealed that fruit flies can fly
into fly-free areas. Early detection is critical in
for up to 100 hours, non-stop, easily moving
preventing populations from establishing.
more than 4 kilometres in search of fruits to
Africa is home to several endemic populations
2
lay their eggs. It is known
that some fruit
of fruit fly that are Notifiable in potential export
flies will move more than 20 kilometres in a
markets. This has already inhibited free trade,
lifetime.
due to interceptions of exotic fruit flies being
Once a fruit fly species becomes endemic it
exported into these zones.
is more difficult to eradicate. Prevention is
particularly important for Bactrocera
invadens (African Invader Fly) because it
reproduces very fast and can replace other
species in the locality. In Kenya,
Bactrocera invadens is considered the
dominant fruit fly species in Kenya3 .
The lack of specificity in crops attacked,
undermines the effectiveness of crop
specific protection strategies.
It is essential that communities
and regions identify potential host crops
and design an IPM programme for all potential
host crops, irrespective of the economic impact
on an individual crop.
This would reduce the commercial risk of
fruit flies building up in one crop, where it is
not considered worthy of control, and migrating
into high valuecrops where the economic
impact is severe.
2
Fletcher (1989)
3
Pers. Comm. Dr. Sunday Ekesi ICIPE Nairobi.
23
Fruit fly populations may be
higher, where small-scale
farmers have a limited number
of mango trees, interspersed
between other hosts such as
coffee, passion fruit, and wild
guava trees. Non-treated
crops act as a ‘bridge’ between
the fruiting seasons of the
mango trees
Real IPM in-company field efficacy trials
The field trials were carried out in commercial mango orchards in Meru, Embu, Makueni and
Machakos. All mango farmers involved have provided testimonials on the extraordinary efficacy
of the Real IPM fruit fly programme. www.realipm.com
Harvested fruit was
incubated and dissected to recover
fruit fly larvae.
The Real IPM fruit fly
programme delivered
80 to 92% control in
Embu and 100%
control in Meru
24
“ I have lost 100% of my mangoes to
fruit fly in some years. I am back in
business thanks to the Real IPM
programme. With a combination of the
soil drenches and the AD devices – I
achieved 90% control. The middleman
who sell my mangoes to Nairobi shops
was so happy that he told his customers he would give them 100 Ksh for
each mango they found with a fruit fly
in it!”
Henry Ngari
Mango Farmer Embu
25
“I had my best harvest in 2013, but
only sold 50% due to fruit fly
damage. But when Real IPM came
in 2014 they taught me how to
manage the fruit fly menace and
this season i have sold 90% of my
produce.The fruit that I could not
sell was not damaged by fruit fly but
due to physical damage when it fell
from the tree”
Daniel Kirai
Mango Farmer Meru
26
French scientists in Reunion Islands
discovered that planting a barrier of maize
plants around low growing crops,
concentrated fruit flies in a predictable
manner at certain times of day.
Fruit flies roosted in the maize crop
where they went for shade.
This made them an easier target for
spraying a control agent.
It is likely that this tactic may also have
a part to play in the control of leafminer
27
Do not use mass
trapping in the
maize border
because it will lure
and kill fruit flies
from 12 m away
(within the crop).
This will reducethe
efficacy of the
nearest Met 69 AD
inside the crop
Other Fruit Fly controls
Sterile Insect Technique (SIT)
Many millions of $US dollars have been spent in various countries around the world on the mass
production and release of sterile male fruit flies of very specific economic species.
These SIT factories are sophisticated laboratories capable of rearing and sterilising insects with
gamma-irradiation. Many millions of SIT males can be produced every week.
The basis of this technology is the understanding that each female fruit fly will mate only once
and that if the sperm is not viable, then no eggs will result. The objective of these releases is for
the sterile male fruit flies to compete with the ‘wild type’ (normal) fruit flies in the orchard.
The sterile males must ‘get to the female fruit flies’ before the potent local fruit fly males.
For the SIT to effectively control the local fruit fly population, there are two important factors:
•
The numbers of SIT released must overwhelm the local male fruit flies, other wise it is an
expensive waste of time.
•
The vigour of the gamma-irradiated sterile males must be sufficient to keep them alive,
after release, for as long as a healthy male. Otherwise large numbers of male SIT must be
release every week – sometimes more than once per week. This is expensive.
For the above reasons, SIT is not effective against dense infestations of fruit flies. It is more
likely to have an effect on fruit fly populations when combined with other fruit fly crop protection
measure, which also conserve fruit fly parasitoids.
Will the Real IPM
Auto dissemination
and
soil applications of
Met 69 reduce the
need to invest in
expensive
SIT technology?
28
Realipm
@Realipm
Real Solutions | Real Farming
www.realipm.com
Insights
Real IPM (Kenya) Ltd
P.O Box 4001- 01002 Madaraka, Thika, Kenya
(+254) 0725 806086 | [email protected] |
Director
Dr Henry Wainwright
[email protected]
Director
Louise Labuschagne
[email protected]
www.realipm.co.uk
Real IPM South Africa Pty Ltd
Managing Director
Jean Kuiper
[email protected]
Elephant Vert
Technical Manager
Benoit Gossaert
[email protected]
South Africa, Zambia,
Zimbabwe
Morocco, Mali, Côte d'Ivoire,
Ghana, Madagascar, Senegal
Burkina Faso
Crop Defenders Ltd
Managing Director
Dr. Ishtiaq Rao
[email protected]
Canada
Real IPM Tanzania
[email protected]
Tanzania
Realipm
The information contained in Real Insights does not constitute advice. Farmers should satisfy themselves of the registration and efficacy issues involved in implementation